News: Starbucks - Seasonal Fall 2010 Drinks

New and returning to Starbucks' fall drink lineup this fall are the Toffee Mocha and Pumpkin Spice Latte respectively. Please note that as long as they have the necessary ingredients on hand, your local Starbucks can make these drinks for you year round.

The Toffee Mocha features espresso, steamed milk, toffee sauce, milk foam, and a dusting of cocoa powder.

The Pumpkin Spice Latte features espresso, steamed milk, pumpkin, spices (nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon), topped with sweetened whipped cream.

Nutritional info after the jump (not yet available for Toffee Mocha.).

News: Boston Market - Half Off Sale on Labor Day

Boston Market is having a 50% off sale on their Market Feast and Family Meals for one day this upcoming Labor Day, September 6, 2010. To take advantage of the deal, simply print out this coupon (link here).

A Market Feast is normally $23.99 and comes with: 1 whole rotisserie chicken, 3 large gourmet sides, 3 cornbread, plus your choice of a family-size soup, entree Caesar salad or family-size dessert.

The Family Meal ranges from $20.85 for the three people meal up to $34.50 for the six people people meal and comes with a corresponding number of sides, cornbread, and your choice of entree (chicken, meatloaf, or turkey).

Review: Jack in the Box - Grilled Breakfast Sandwich

Jack in the Box's Grilled Breakfast Sandwich retails for $2.99 and features a smorgasbord of breakfast items (two eggs, two slices of ham, two strips of bacon, and two slices of American cheese) sandwiched between two slices of grilled artisan bread.

News: Starbucks - Adding Flavored Via Ready Brews

Starbucks Via instant coffee will come in four more varieties this fall. Starbucks announced that they are adding four natural flavors to the line: vanilla, mocha, caramel, and cinnamon spice.

The price of Via online at the Starbucks.com starts at around $9.95 for 12 servings (~83 cents per serving) to $35.95 for 50 servings (~72 cents per serving).

I've tried these before (I got upsold while buying a latte :P) and surprisingly enough it tastes exactly like Starbuck's coffee, but with more consistency in taste (because sometimes the coffee at Starbucks has been sitting too long). Basically, if you like Starbuck's coffee, you'll like Via, and if you don't, you won't.

News: Jack in the Box - New Pastrami Grilled Sandwich

In an expansion of its grilled sandwich line, Jack in the Box added today a new Pastrami Grilled Sandwich to its menu. The sandwich features "hot pastrami, Swiss-style cheese, pickle fillets and a new deli mustard served between slices of grilled artisan bread." I wonder if Swiss cheese is a commercial designation like Scotch or Champagne because otherwise I'm really wondering how "Swiss-style" cheese is different from regular Swiss. No word on pricing but I'd expect something in the range $4 and $5.

The Pastrami Grilled Sandwich is not available in the following markets: Austin, Bakersfield, Chico/Redding, Hawaii, Houston, Sacramento, Santa Barbara and Seattle. I'm going to guess those restaurants don't carry any of the Grilled Sandwiches.

Nutritional info after the jump.

Review: Pizza Hut - Big Italy Pizza

Pizza Hut's new Big Italy Pizza is an almost 2 feet long rectangular pizza with rounded edges available with up to 3 toppings for $12. Under Pizza Hut's new simplified pricing structure, you can get it as a specialty pizza for $2 more. (Update 9/8: According to Pizza Hut, the Big Italy features Italian spices baked into their signature Hand-Tossed Style crust. They are promoting the limited-time pizza with a Facebook fan giveaway of 1,000 $15 gift cards. Details here: Facebook.com/PizzaHut)

Usually, I go with pepperoni, sausage, and some vegetable or another, but this time I went with chicken, bacon, and mushrooms. It comes on a cardboard tray covered by a paper bag.

News: Burger King - Whopper Jr. Price Now $1.29

Ew. Besides raising their prices on the Double Cheeseburger and coming out with the Buck Double as a cheaper alternative, Burger King recently announced that they are raising the price of the Whopper Jr. nationwide to $1.29 after testing the price point in several markets. Whopper Jr. lovers are crying all over the place.

In other BK news, they are planning on rolling out a new breakfast menu this upcoming September. Will it be similar to the brunch menu they were testing?

Sunday Funny: McDonald's Israel - "Secret Service"

It's an Israeli McDonald's ad in English with Hebrew subtitles (I'm guessing). If you look carefully, you'll see that they grill their patties over charcoal instead of on a griddle. From the first 20 seconds or so, it could be a crime drama or something.

Review: Daphne's Greek Cafe - Kabob Plate

I keep calling Daphne's Greek Cafe "Daf-feens" instead of "Daf-knees" even though there's no "i" in there. It's a Southern California Greek fast casual chain. The Sister-in-Law likes it because they give free food for your birthday and it's near her workplace. She brought home a Mix & Match Two Kabob Plate one night, around the time of her birthday. It normally costs $8.79.

Frozen Friday: Hungry-Man - Chopped Beef Steak

Hungry-Man frozen dinners recently re-packaged some of their frozen dinners as "Pub Favorites" i.e. pub grub. My local Ralph's supermarket had a great deal on Hungry-Man dinners, which normally run between $3 and $4. They were selling them for only $1.49! One of the ones that I bought was the Chopped Beef Steak which features grilled beef patties in an onion beef gravy, seasoned roast potatoes, and green beans with bacon.

News: Hardee's - New Country Fried Steak 'N' Gravy Biscuit

Hardee's has taken their Country Fried Steak Biscuit and added country gravy to the mix to form the new Country Fried Steak 'N' Gravy Biscuit. As the name suggests (states, really), the breakfast sandwich consists of a country-fried (breaded) steak slathered with a fair amount of country gravy served between a Hardee's Made from Scratch buttermilk biscuit.

The price is $2.19 for the sandwich or $3.89 for a combo with coffee and Hash Rounds. As with most Hardee's (and Carl's Jr) promotions there's an online coupon for a free coffee or beverage with the purchase of a Country Fried Steak 'N' Gravy Biscuit (expires 10/23/2010).

Nutrition info after the jump.

Review: McDonald's - McChicken

McDonald's McChicken is a value menu chicken sandwich and features the standard battered, breaded and fried chicken patty with mayo and shredded lettuce on a bun. As with everything on McDonald's Dollar Menu, it is $1 (Bet you didn't see that coming).

Review: Popeyes - Biscuit

Popeyes Biscuit features a very buttery, crisp, almost flaky, crust with a nice, soft, pillowy crumb on the inside. At least in L.A., they've copped a KFC and sell them two for $1.

News: Pizza Hut - New Big Italy Pizza has Arrived

Pizza Hut has made big over-sized pizzas in the past (remember the Big Foot anyone?) and now they're doing it again with the new Big Italy Pizza which, as far as I can tell, is so named because it's big and, you know, pizza is Italian in origin. I think they should have just taken a page from Jack in the Box and just called it the "Really Big Pizza."

Retailing for $12, the Big Italy Pizza features almost 2 feet of pizza in roughly-shaped like a pill with rounded edges. The pizza is cut into 18 slices and can be had, at the price, with up to three toppings.

Update: The Big Italy Pizza reviewed.

Review: Subway - Turkey Jalapeno Melt

I tried Subway's new Turkey Jalapeno Melt to see if it would "burn the wimp right outta [me]" like Subway suggests. The Turkey Jalapeno Melt is just a variant of the Turkey sub, except you don't have to mull about whether you want jalapenos on your sub. My "sandwich artist" still asked me what cheese I wanted and what sauce (The right answer to make a proper Turkey Jalapeno is the "shredded Monterey Cheddar blend" and the "chipotle southwest sauce.") The price for a footlong is an even $6 plus tax.

Review: Chick-fil-A - Chargrilled Chicken Cool Wrap

One of the most expensive items on the Chick-fil-A menu, the Chargrilled Chicken Cool Wrap is basically a chicken salad rolled inside a lavash type of multi-grain flatbread. The filling consists of chargrilled chicken, green leaf lettuce, tomato slices, shredded red cabbage, shredded carrots, a blend of shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, and your choice of dressing (I chose the Spicy Chipotle dressing). It carries a price in the salad-range of $5.35.

Sunday Funny: Nando's - "Where's my Chips?"

This Nando's 30-second ad's a bit more low brow, but I guess dumb blonde jokes are always in vogue and they do tie it into the product.

Review: Wienerschnitzel - Chili Cheeseburger

Wienerschnitzel's Chili Cheeseburger is a simple affair; it features a sesame bun, a beef patty, a slice of American cheese, and a spread of their trademark meat chili. It's fairly cheap for $1.39.

Review: Taco Bell - Crispy Potato Soft Taco

Taco Bell's Crispy Potato Soft Taco is a value menu item and features their seasoned potato bites, shredded cheese, lettuce, and a Pepper Jack sauce making it, ostensibly, one of the few vegetarian options on Taco Bell's menu. The price on this one is the same as a Crunchy Taco: 89 cents.

Review: Arby's - Jr. Chicken Sandwich

I think today's "Junior" size is how big burgers used to be back in the day, I wonder they would think about the burgers of today. Well, there's no wondering about Arby's Jr. Chicken Sandwich, a standard value-priced typical fast food chicken sandwich for $1.